Open letter in defence of Anish Kapoor's work

Thursday, September 17, 2015

This work by Anish Kapoor is universal; it has nothing to do with the King or the Queen, with Versailles or France. Appreciated in 2011 in Italy, it will be just as liked throughout the world, because this work speaks of light, of birth, of life’s journey, of the unknown: the mystery and darkness that surround death. It also tells us that we all come from the same planet and that we have to love it.

This work by Anish Kapoor is universal; it has nothing to do with the King or the Queen, with Versailles or France. Appreciated in 2011 in Italy, it will be just as liked throughout the world, because this work speaks of light, of birth, of life’s journey, of the unknown: the mystery and darkness that surround death. It also tells us that we all come from the same planet and that we have to love it.

Anish Kapoor becomes a target for those who dislike diversity. Art is a free force! Art is timeless; there is no art of the past nor of the present, there is only art! The history of art is not art, it’s remembrance. Art is the most valuable “product” of all mankind, one that allows all cultures, all men and all women to express a large quantity of deep feelings, millions, billions, and others yet to be discovered, a bit like all the stars in the universe, of which we know no end. Art has no borders, no religion, no race, no gender, no perfection, no pretentions; art expresses mankind and it will survive until the last man will be on this planet! Any acts of violence against art do nothing but make it stronger, allowing human conscience to grow in order to reveal even more that art, love and friendship are basic and indestructible needs without which mankind would not exist. We have been taught to be afraid of diversity only to create a need within us: the need to be protected, from someone, from something, so that it would be easier for us to accept control and, consequently, power.

Loving diversity, on the other hand, allows us to grow, to understand others in order to better understand ourselves and to evolve. Being different is crucial. Who would want an exact copy of themselves next to them their entire life? Can you imagine a world where all human beings are identical?

So: long live the different races, long live the different religions, long live diversity! Just like colours: it is thanks to their differences and their skilful blending that we can enjoy millions of shades; otherwise, everything would be yellow, red and blue! We are all free to express ourselves, but always respecting others as we do so. Besides, in all religions this concept, known as the “golden rule”, is clearly expressed: «Do not do unto others what you would not want others to do unto you».

Dear Anish, dear friend, we support you and art! Lorenzo, Mario, Maurizio and the entire team of Galleria Continua